5 Tips for Making the Most of a Long Commute

When I was interviewing to work for Martha Stewart in Westport, Conn., while living in Brooklyn, N.Y., people constantly asked me whether I really wanted to do that long drive, which would take one to two hours each way.

Yes, I did.

I mean, I wasn’t fired up to spend all that time on the road—but I was fired up to work for Martha. Martha! To get a full-time job working for the big M was what I wanted more than anything. It was a dream job. And I wasn’t going to let a long commute get in the way. Nor was I going to move; I loved my Brooklyn life.

In order to have both things I wanted, a long commute was necessary. And so it was up to me to make it work. In order to get there in an hour (and sometimes less), I’d have to leave before 6 a.m. at the latest. I’d arrive at work by 7 a.m. and since there was a gym on site, I could work out, shower and be ready to go all before most people had their morning coffee. Plus, at least twice a week, Martha would come for a workout too. If she was in a chatting mood, we could connect in a social, informal environment. One-on-ones with Martha Stewart? Yes, please.

Afternoon commutes were for books on tape, so I became an avid “reader” as well. I put mileage on my car, but my VW Cabrio could take it—I’d just pop the convertible top and drive down some bucolic Connecticut roads. I car karaoke-d like the rock star I felt like, and no one was there to critique my singing but the squirrels and the deer.

I made it useful, energizing and fun. And: Martha.

Here are five tips for how to make the most out of your daily commute:

1. Use your downtime however you choose.

Too few of us enjoy downtime these days. If you’re on public transportation, take a nap. Play a game. Enjoy the solitude or be social. Read a book or watch a show. Or if you’re driving, listen to podcasts or books on tape. Although the “where” is decided, what you do with your mind is 100 percent up to you. Invest this time wisely.

2. Network and connect with other people.

So maybe everyone won’t have a 1:1 with Martha Stewart, but who can you connect with on your commute? Who is on the train or bus? Could you make a new friend? You’re all heading to one job or another, so this could be a good time to network. And if you’re not around other people, my guess is that you’re near your phone; phone a friend! If you commute at an ungodly hour, connect with someone in a different time zone. Or find another ungodly-hour commuter and call that person. Do you have a mom, dad, sister, brother, aunties, uncles or besties who live far away? A socially connected person is a happier person, and more likely to succeed at work.

3. Make the bus or train ride your email and social media time.

Many time-management experts have found that email and social media, used too frequently throughout the day, can be a productivity black hole. Save your emails for your commute, do social media at the top and tail of your day, where it’s less guilt and more pleasure. If you limit emailing to these times, you’ll find that lots of issues have resolved themselves by the time you check in. Also, you’ll minimize the email distraction during the day and eliminate productivity switching costs by checking email too frequently. All of these lead to a more productive you, with a greater likelihood of career success.

4. Let your commute be your hard out.

If you have a bus or a train you need to make, let that be your “gotta go” (yes, I realize that this is easier if you’re more senior, but stay with me). A hard out is the latest time that you can work. It’s inflexible. It can be hard to set clear boundaries between work and home, but if your body needs to be on public transportation at a certain time, then that’s a clear boundary. Suddenly those things that trickle into the commuting hours are forced to be resolved earlier (or from home). Clear boundary setting is key to success at work, and happiness in life.

5. Chill out.

You know that there’s all kinds of scientific proof for meditation. Whether it’s 10 minutes a day with the Headspace app or group meditation on the regular, it has a positive impact on your brain, which ultimately translates into a better career and a better you. If you’ve got hours a day where your body has a commitment but your mind is free, commit to using a portion of that time for meditation. If you’re driving, of course I’d prefer you don’t shut your eyes, but you can practice meditation in your own way. Breathe, focus, clear your mind.

A version of this post previously appeared on Fairygodboss, the largest career community that helps women get the inside scoop on pay, corporate culture, benefits, and work flexibility. Founded in 2015, Fairygodboss offers company ratings, job listings, discussion boards, and career advice.

Comments Policy

Vault.com encourages you to express your opinions and engage in discussions with one another by leaving comments on our site. While we promote an open forum, please follow these guidelines to ensure an enjoyable and welcoming environment for all our readers. Vault.com does not review or moderate all comments but we reserve the right to remove or edit content once posted.

Respect one another. Debates are great, but attacks are not. Please refrain from posting offensive, obscene, threatening or abusive comments. If you personally attack other readers or writers, your comment(s) and responses to those comments may be removed from the discussion. Attacks create a hostile environment that discourages discussion. You are fully responsible for libelous or defamatory comments.

Hate-speech will not be tolerated. Comments containing racism, homophobia, sexism, or any other form of hate-speech have no place on our site.

Keep your language in check. Vulgar posts may offend other readers. Our filters are fairly tolerant, allowing for quite a bit of colorful/questionable language, but too many obscenities may prevent a comment from posting. In addition, in some cases, if a post is still too vulgar, a moderator may later remove or edit it.

Please note that comments may be edited by the moderator for any reason, including but not limited to language.

Stay on topic. Comments should be related to the topic discussed in the associated article or blog post. In order to keep the conversation relevant, off-topic comments may be edited or removed.

Don't impersonate someone else. You may not use a false e-mail address, impersonate any person or entity, or otherwise mislead as to the origin of your comments. If we believe you've impersonated someone else, we reserve the right to remove the comment.

Spam and commercial content will be removed. We do not welcome comments containing copy used for commercial purposes or for soliciting funds. If we see them, we reserve the right to remove them.

Readers may "report" concerns about other reader comments. Please use the "Report Abuse" link to flag inappropriate content. If a reader reports a concern, moderators will try to review that concern as soon as possible. This may take a few days although we hope to review comments more quickly. We do not remove every comment that has been reported and we cannot respond individually to every report.

Stop and think before you comment. We won't remove comments because a reader or writer regrets a post. Please remember that these comments are searchable and a comment history has a long life on the web.

Don't include personal information in your comments. We strongly discourage readers from posting personal information about themselves (ex. address, telephone number, workplace) and reserve the right to remove any comments we find with personal information about other people or that violates a third party's right to privacy.

Complaints about removed comments. We reserve the right to remove comments left to protest a removed comment. Please contact us if you have any complaints about deleted comments.

Repeated abuse of our guidelines may lead to commenting privileges being suspended. If you think you've been banned by mistake, let us know.

For further questions and comments regarding commenting on Vault.com, please contact us.

Get tips on interviewing, networking, resumes, and more directly to your inbox.